How to Change a String on an Electric Guitar

Stringing up a guitar can be a difficult thing to do if it's your first time trying. There are a bunch of different types of guitars, all with different bridges and methods for re-stringing them.
Most electric guitars are simple to change a string, and can be done within minutes. Others, such as the Floyd-Rose design, popular with certain Ibanez guitars, require a little bit of special knowledge if you have never dealt with them before.

On your basic electric guitar, the "bridge" is the part of the guitar, near the pickups, where the strings are inserted to hold them in place. Electric guitars, unlike acoustics, generally have small holes just past the bridge. In order to change a string you simply need to remove the old string by loosening it with the tuner peg until you can remove the string from the tuning peg. After removing the string from the tuning peg, you should cut the curly end of the string where it was wrapped around the tuning peg, and pull the rest of the string through the hole until it is completely removed. Adding a new string is essentially the same thing, only backwards. All that you need to do is thread the new string through the hole, pull it through all of the way, and attach it to the tuning peg.

This is the part that gets most new guitarists trying to re-string their guitar. Tuning pegs differ just as bridge designs do. There are 2 main types, with different strategies to attach the string. One type is merely a hole going from side to side through the tuning peg. For this type of peg, you will need to extend the string across the neck of the guitar, and leave about 6-8 inches past the tuning peg to which the string belongs. Cut off the rest. Place the end of the string inside of the hole, and if you can, bend the string upwards so that you can hold it in place while you turn the peg. Bending the excess string upwards a little bit, will allow the string to stay in place while you turn the peg. Sometimes you may have to hold the string in place until you get it wrapped around a few times with the tuner peg.

The most important thing to remember at this point is to keep pressure on the string. With your free hand, lift the string off of the neck, and kind of pull against the peg, to add tension on the string. If you do not keep tension on the string throughout the entire process, you're string will not be on properly and you will probably have to start all over. Keep tension on the string at all times, but try not to bend it.

For the second type of tuner peg, there is a slit across the top of the peg, along with a hole in the center. For these, you will have to follow the same process of leaving about 6-8 inches of string past the assigned tuning peg, only this time, you will insert the end of the string into that hole. When the string is fully inserted into the hole, bend it until it fits into one side of the slit, and either bend it downward, or to one side or another, anything you can do to hold it in place and keep it from slipping out of the hole. Once you get the string wrapped around the peg a few times you shouldn't have to worry about it coming out of the hole.

If you have an Ibanez, that includes the Floyd-Rose style bridge, string changing gets a little bit more complicated. In order to remove the old string, you first need to (If equipped) remove the tuning locks at the top of the neck, near the tuning pegs. This device is used on Floyd-Rose style bridges because of the way the bridge floats, it is used to keep the strings in tune. As you look at your bridge, you probably are wondering, "How does this work" It's very simple actually. You're going to need some extra tools. Once you find an allen wrench that fits your guitar, look at your bridge and notice the clamp like rectangular metal pieces right next to where the string is inserted. Loosen this clamp with your allen wrench, and you'll notice that the balls at the end of the string are not there.

Once you get the string removed, you need to take your new string, and cut it off at the ball end. After you have completed that, simply push the end of the string in the same place the old string came out, and tighten the clamp back down with your allen wrench. Attach the other end of the string to the tuning peg, and have fun trying to tune your guitar with a floating bridge. After you get your guitar somewhat in tune with the other strings, you'll need to put your tuning locks back on. NOTE : If you've replaced the tuning lock, and your guitar gets out of tune, be sure you don't tune it back with the pegs, or else it will break your string. In order to tune your guitar, notice the small round black knobs at the end of each string on the bridge. Tune your guitar by turning these.

Changing strings on a guitar may be frustrating at first, but once you get the hang of it, you'll be amazed at how fast you're able to do it and get right back to playing. You'll wonder why you ever needed a guide on how to change strings.